Mustafa Ali speaks on chasing dreams and shattering stereotypes

Mustafa Ali has a lion’s heart that pumps out inspiration, both inside and out of the ring. After crystallizing his moniker as The Heart of 205 Live, the high-flying workhorse has carried on that tradition on the SmackDown LIVE brand, wowing the WWE Universe with big victories while also shattering ceilings at every turn.

In an episode of the Emmy and Peabody Award-nominated digital show “The Secret Life of Muslims,” the WWE Superstar recounts the stereotypical hurdles he’s crossed during his career journey and how he was able to twist hate into fate.

“I want the next 16-year-old kid who looks like me to know he’s not automatically the bad guy,” Ali explained in the Season 2 premiere episode. “Hopefully that kid can look at Mustafa Ali and say, ‘Hey, he’s not the bad guy, and I don’t have to be, either.’ Everyone in the world, regardless if they’re Muslim or not, does not have to adhere to the label society slaps on you. No one defines you but you, and that’s what I’m fighting for.”